To split a PDF, open the Split PDF tab of a browser tool, choose the file, tell it where to cut, and download the pieces. You can cut by page ranges such as 1-3, 5, 8-, into one file per page, or into chunks of a fixed number of pages. Each range becomes its own file, and everything happens on your device, so a contract or an ID scan does not have to be uploaded to a stranger's server. The details below are the parts that go wrong: page numbers, file-size limits and what the pieces do not keep.
The three ways to split
The PDF toolkit has a Split PDF tab with a "Split by" choice:
- Page ranges. You type the pages, and every range you type becomes one file. This is the most flexible mode.
- Every page on its own. One file per page. A 12-page PDF gives 12 files.
- Every N pages. Equal chunks, and the last one may be shorter. A 10-page PDF split every 4 pages gives pages 1 to 4, 5 to 8 and 9 to 10.
Before you press the button, a line under the field previews the result, for example "3 files: 1–3, 5, 8–12". If that is not what you meant, fix it now. Pressing the button costs nothing, but reading the preview is faster.
How to write the ranges
Type page numbers and ranges separated by commas. A semicolon or a space works as a separator too, and a dash typed on a phone keyboard, which is often a longer dash, is accepted. Three forms are possible:
5is page 5 alone.1-3is pages 1, 2 and 3.8-means page 8 to the end of the document, so you do not need to know the page count.
Here is a worked example with a 12-page PDF called contract.pdf, where pages 1 to 3 are the contract, page 5 is a signature page and pages 8 to the end are an annex. Type 1-3, 5, 8- and the tool makes three files:
| File | Pages in it |
|---|---|
| contract-pages-1-3.pdf | 3 |
| contract-page-5.pdf | 1 |
| contract-pages-8-12.pdf | 5 |
Pages 4, 6 and 7 are simply not in any piece. Download each file with its own button, or press "Download all (ZIP)" to get contract-split.zip with all of them.
If you mistype, the message says which part is wrong: a token that is not a page or range, a page outside the document ("which has 12 pages"), or a range that goes backwards, such as 5-3. Write the smaller page first.
Split or extract?
The toolkit has a separate Extract pages tab, and the two are easy to mix up. Split makes one file per range. Extract makes one file containing the pages you name, in the order you type them, so 3, 1 puts page 3 first. If you want the pieces to stay separate, split. If you want a short version of a long document, extract.
Use the position, not the printed number
The number printed on a page and its position in the file are often different, because a cover and a table of contents come first. If page "1" of the body is the fourth page of the file, you must type 4. The tool counts positions. Open the PDF in your viewer and read its page counter to see which number to use, and check one cut by looking at the first and last page of the result.
Splitting to fit a size limit
A common reason to split is an email or upload form that rejects big files. The tool splits by pages, not by size, so you have to aim. Divide the file size by the number of pages to get an average per page, then pick a chunk size that lands comfortably under the limit. Pages are not equal: one scanned photo page can weigh as much as thirty pages of text. After the split, the result list shows the page count and size of every file, so you can see whether any piece is still too big and split that one again with a smaller N.
What the pieces do not keep
Pages are copied with their text, images and drawings exactly as they are, so there is no loss of quality. But some things belong to the whole document and not to a page, and the pieces do not carry them:
- bookmarks and the outline,
- fillable form fields,
- links that point from one page to another,
- the title and author of the original, because every piece is a new document.
If you depend on any of these, split in the program that made the file.
Limits and errors
A split can create at most 300 files, so a 400-page document cannot be turned into single pages in one go; split it into two halves first. The file must be 100 MB or smaller. A password-protected PDF cannot be opened at all, so open it in your viewer, save a copy without the password, and use that copy. A damaged file is reported by name.
Checking your work
Add up the pages of the pieces and compare with what you meant to cut. Open the first and last page of every piece. If the pieces will be sent to different people, open each one before you send it: a page of private data in the wrong piece is the usual accident. If a page came out sideways, the same toolkit can turn it; the next step after splitting is often to rotate or to merge the pieces in a new order.
Going the other way
If what you really have is a pile of photos or scans, you do not need to split anything. Turn them into one PDF directly, in the order you want, and split that file later if needed.